Percentile distribution
Where the middle 50% lands.
Half earn between $47k and $181k. That band is the interquartile range. The 90th percentile sits at $311k, roughly 3.2 times the median. That upper tail is where the largest organizations cluster.
10th
$20k
25th
$47k
50th · median
$96k
75th
$181k
90th
$311k
| Percentile | Total comp | Means |
|---|---|---|
| 90th | $311,280 | Top 10% of earners |
| 75th | $181,385 | 25% earn more than this |
| 50th · median | $95,864 | The typical executive |
| 25th | $46,578 | 25% earn less than this |
| 10th | $20,000 | 10% of executives earn less than this |
How pay is structured
How the package is built.
The typical pay structure across 822 organizations with full Schedule J reporting (32% of the 2,588 orgs in this slice). Each share is the average across orgs of the fraction of total comp that goes to this component, so the bar fills 100%.
$244,618
typical total · 2024
Median total compensation in the subset. The dollar amounts below show what each share works out to on a package this size.
86%
Base salary
85.6% of total
$209,393
Bonus & incentive
3.3% of total
$8,072
Retirement & deferred
3.4% of total
$8,317
Benefits
5.7% of total
$13,943
Other reportable
1.7% of total
$4,159
Shares are averaged across organizations, so they sum to ~100%. Dollar amounts are illustrative (share% of typical total) and don't reflect any specific org.
How this compares
The number in context.
Every row links to its own dedicated benchmark page.
All figures are median total reported compensation · IRS Form 990, Schedule J
Geography
Pay varies by state.
District of Columbia pays $81,230 more than the median Executive Director compensation in international, foreign affairs & national security nationally.
Top 10 states · International, Foreign Affairs & National Security Executive Director median
01
District of Columbia
312 orgs
$177,094
→
02
New York
311 orgs
$170,922
→
03
Maryland
55 orgs
$113,090
→
04
Virginia
115 orgs
$112,005
→
05
Massachusetts
88 orgs
$107,448
→
06
California
282 orgs
$102,820
→
07
Minnesota
68 orgs
$92,950
→
08
Illinois
73 orgs
$89,600
→
09
Tennessee
54 orgs
$89,000
→
10
Texas
153 orgs
$85,000
→
Top-paying organizations
The ten highest-paid international, foreign affairs & national security Executive Directors by filing.
| # | Organization | Location | Total compensation | Filing year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | Endeavor Global Inc (F/K/A The Endeavor Initiative Inc) | New York, NY | $2,074,264 | 2023 |
| 02 | Council On Foreign Relations Inc | New York, NY | $1,504,030 | 2023 |
| 03 | Ciee Inc | South Portland, ME | $1,440,948 | 2023 |
| 04 | National Defense Industrial Association | Arlington, VA | $1,376,178 | 2023 |
| 05 | American Israel Public Affairs Committee | Washington, DC | $1,367,537 | 2023 |
| 06 | Birthright Israel Foundation | New York, NY | $1,141,908 | 2023 |
| 07 | Cnfa | Washington, DC | $1,053,908 | 2023 |
| 08 | Dkt International Inc | Washington, DC | $1,024,729 | 2024 |
| 09 | World Education Services Inc | New York, NY | $996,526 | 2024 |
| 10 | Jewish Institute For National Security Of America | Washington, DC | $951,780 | 2024 |
Total includes base, bonus, other reportable, and deferred/retirement compensation per Schedule J.
Compare your organization
What does a $X org pay?
Adjust the slider to your organization's revenue. The median Executive Director compensation for international, foreign affairs & national security nonprofits in that revenue band updates live.
Your organization's revenue
~$6M
annual revenue
$0$10M$100M$1B+
Median Executive Director comp · $1M – $10M
$139,021
951 organizations in this band
Percentile range for your band
25th percentile$80,632
50th percentile$139,021
75th percentile$205,751
Questions
{sector} {role} pay, answered
- How much does a International, Foreign Affairs & National Security nonprofit Executive Director make?
- The median total compensation for a Executive Director at a international, foreign affairs & national security nonprofit is $95,864, based on 2,588 organizations in IRS Form 990 filings. The middle 50% fall between $46,578 and $181,385.
- What is the salary range for a Executive Director in International, Foreign Affairs & National Security nonprofits?
- Pay ranges from $46,578 at the 25th percentile to $181,385 at the 75th and $311,280 at the 90th. The spread reflects differences in organization size, budget, and region within the sector.
- Is this International, Foreign Affairs & National Security compensation data reliable?
- Yes. It comes from IRS Form 990 filings, legal documents filed under penalty of perjury, not self-reported surveys. Figures cover 2,588 international, foreign affairs & national security nonprofits reporting a Executive Director.
- Why does International, Foreign Affairs & National Security nonprofit Executive Director pay differ from other sectors?
- Compensation reflects the typical organization size, revenue, and operating complexity of each sector. Larger, better-funded international, foreign affairs & national security organizations pull the upper percentiles higher, while smaller ones anchor the lower end.
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